Wireless strapping seal

ABSTRACT

A NESTABLE MAGAZINE SEAL BLANK INCLUDES IN ITS FLANGES INTERLOCKS COMPRISED OF AN APERTURE AND AN INWARDLY DEPRESSED BOSS FACILITATING BOTH EMBRACEABLE RETENTION BETWEEN SEAL BLANKS WITHIN A STACK AND ENDWISE SEPARATION OF THE BLANKS.

Jan. 12, 1971 KN D; ETAL 3,553,794

WIRELESS STRAPPING SEAL Filed Sept. 26, 1968 m J HN N N w E AM N. A m WE O R Y B 9 7% Z Y ATTORNEYS United States Patent O 3,553,794 WIRELESSSTRAPPING SEAL Franz A. Kneidl, Milford, and Rollin M. Amsden, Jr., NewBritain, Cnn., assignors to The Stanley Works, New

Britain, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Filed Sept. 26, 1968, Ser.No. 762,926

Int. Cl. B65d 63/06 US. CI. 2423 9 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Anestable magazine seal blank includes in its flanges interlockscomprised of an aperture and an inwardly depressed boss facilitatingboth embraceable retention between seal blanks within a stack andendwise separation of the blanks.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relatesgenerally to deformable seals for connecting overlapping portions ofstrapping and the like. In particular, it is directed toward a new andimproved open end seal blank adapted to be stacked in a nested andinterlocked condition.

Open end seal blanks as utilized in strapping and binding devicesgenerally are supplied to a joint-forming mechanism from magazinesadapted to contain stacks of the blanks. Precision feeding of theblanks, one at a time axially endwise from the bottom of such a stack,as in common, necessitates use of uniform stacks..Each blank of a givenstack must be readily separated endwise, yet the stack must be capableof being easily moved as a unit. Consequently the stack also shouldpossess the property of being quite difficult to separate longitudinallytherealong into its component seal blanks. Various ways of interlockingthe successively adjoining seal blanks of a stack have been devised inefforts to maintain the integrity of the stack. Generally, the sealblanks each have a more or less flat back portion and outwardly flaringand largely planar flanges extending along the parallel longitudinaledges thereof. Proportionally, the back portion approximately matchesthe width of the strapping with which it is to be used, and the flangesare somewhat less than half of that measurement.

Because the blanks are uniformly alike, a nested stack of such sealblanks assumes the posture of spaced back plates and adjoining flanges.Grooves have therefore been provided on the outwardly facing planarsurface of each flange, and embossments have been provided on the innerplanar surface of each flange, the grooves and embossments being sooffset that an embossment on the inner face of an overlying seal blankwill mate with the groove on the outer face of the seal blank nestedthereunder. Such interlocking configurations are generally provided onthe flanges more or less centrally thereon.

The groove-embossment interlock utilizes minimum boss contact surface.Such an arrangement generally provides point contact instead of linecontact, in order to facilitate axially endwise separation. Thisstructure reduces the available interference to separationlongitudinally along a nested stack. Such an interlock also requiresminiature, precision tooling, which is unable to withstand prolonged usewithout exhibiting substantial wear.

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide a new andimproved seal blank of the type described which obviates at least theaforementioned disadvantages of the groove-embossment interlocks andadvantageously provides an improved simplified interlock havingincreased interference to longitudinal separation along a 3,553,794Patented Jan. 12, 1971 stack without loss either of ease of separationaxially endwise from a stack or loss of contact area.

Another object of this invention is to provide magazine seal blanks withimproved interlocks affording less likelihood of separationlongitudinally of a stack coupled with increased stack flexibility.

An additional object of this invention is to provide magazine sealblanks with improved interlocks for reducing to a minimum the endwiseplay and wobble between seal blanks While at the same time facilitatingincreased locking engagement between seal blanks and greater integrityof the stack.

Another object of this invention is to provide new and improved magazineseal blanks designed to permit greater tolerance in the flange angle,reduced displacement of seal blank material and facile, rapid seal blankformation with tools of increased durability, resulting in a morecontinuous and economical manufacturing operation.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a new and improvedwireless magazine seal of the type described incorporating a full depthlocking feature that enhances interference to seal separation along astack, and facilitates axially endwise separation of a seal from astack.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more indetail hereinafter.

In accordance with the present invention, these and related objects areaccomplished by providing an improved magazine seal blank structurewhich utilizes lanced aperture and sharp edge embossed portions of eachflange as interlocks affording increased seal engaging surface andinterference to separation along a stack together with ready releaseendwise from the stack of one of the seals.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combination of elements and arrangement of parts which is exemplified inthe: construction hereafter set forth.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an open magazine seal blankincorporating an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged, fragmented end view, partly broken away, showingseal blanks like that in FIG. 1 nested in interlocking relation; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmented view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showingpart of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawing ingreater detail wherein like reference numerals indicate like partsthroughout the several figures, an embodiment of a seal blankincorporating the invention, generally shown by 10 and preferably formedas a single unit from sheet metal stock includes a flat, rectilinearback plate portion 12 and a pair of generally flat, rectangulardepending side portions or flanges 14, integrally connected to the backportion along its opposite parallel side edges 16. The flanges 14 are soformed as to flare outpwardly and downwardly from the back plate 12,terminating in free or exposed longitudinal edges 18 which are generallyparallel to the edges 16 and separated from each other by a distancegreater than that separating the said edges 16. The flanges 14 in theembodiment illustrated are of a. width which is slightly less thanone-half the width of the back plate 12, the latter being equal to oronly slightly greater in width than the width of the strapping withwhich the seal blank is to be used. As will be readily appreciated andas suggested in FIG. 2, the flaring flanges 14 permit the seal blanks 10to be nestably assembled in longitudinally extending stacks forconvenience in handling and shipping, and for insertion as a unit intothe storage and dispensing magazine of a strapping tool.

As best seen in FIG. 1, the magazine seal blank is open at both thefront and rear ends thereof. In ac cordance with the present inventionapertured and full depth interlocks shown generally by 22 are providedlongitudinally midway along the flanges 14. The interlocks 22 aresubstantially identical and comprise a boss 24 disposed midway along theexposed edge 18 of its flange 14, and an aperture 26 adjoining the boss24. The top side of the aperture 26 provides a generally outwardly anddownwardly facing locking shoulder 27 at a right angle to the plane ofthe flange. As best shown in FIG. 3, the boss 24 comprises a centralsegment 28 and a pair of camming segments or ramps 30 which combine toprovide a generally inwardly and upwardly facing locking shoulder 29substantially parallel to the lOcking surface 27. The segment 28 isoffset inwardly relatively to the supporting flange and generally towardthe remaining flange 14 so that in its offset posture the segment 28 isdisposed parallel to its supporting flange 14. Advantageously, the depthof offset is substantially equal to the thickness of the flange stock,although it is advantage of the present invention that this depth may bevaried to provide the most desirable holding function for the interlock22. This arrangement of structure provides that when blanks 10 arenested as in FIG. 2, the offset segments 28 snap into apertures 26 of anunderlying seal blank to lock the blanks together as the lockingshoulders 27 and 29 coact and thereby utilize substantially the fullthickness of flanges 14 of one blank 10 as contact surfaces with likeflanges of the adjoining blank in the direction longitudinally of astack, thereby giving maximum interference to longitudinal separation ofa stack. The flat flanges smoothly contact one another except at theinterlocks 22. The full depth locking engagement of the shoulders 27 and29 prevents disengagement except by forces exerted axially along theblanks. Forces longitudinal of a stack cannot disengage the interlocks.The sharp edges of each interlock, therefore, offer more of the neededlocking control than do heretofore utilized rounded edges. Furthermore,locking contact between two blanks incorporating the invention is alwaysgreater than heretofore available point contact, and is calculable interms of area and not merely linear contact.

As mentioned, the boss 24 further comprises camming ramps or segments 30on either side of and connecting the parallel offset segment 28 with theremaining and undeformed lengths of the exposed edge 18. The threesegments 30, 28 and 30 together comprise a portion of the total lengthof the affected edge 18 which is shown as approximately one-fourteenthof that length, although this is variable as circumstances warrant. Theoffset parallel segment 28 and the connecting segments 30, of theillustrated embodiment, are conveniently dimensioned so that theparallel segment comprises about one-third of the total length of theboss 24. This arrangement of structure provides that the segments 30each present cam angles of about 30 which facilitate axially endwise separation of a seal blank 10 from a nested stack as a seal deliverymechanism bears against one end of the affected blank and drives theforemost cam web segment on eachflange across the foremost and generallyupstanding edge 32 of each aperture 26. In this manner the boss 24 ofeach flange is forced out from the adjoining aperture, thereby unlockingand separating the blank from the stack.

The aperture 26 of the through-interlock 22 extends, as noted above,from the boss 24 across the flange toward the back plate 12. Generallythe interlock as a whole extends across the flange approximatelyone-third of the total width of the flange. The aperture 26 isadvantageously positioned and dimensioned to readily receive the boss 24of an overlying blank 10, including the offset segment 28 and thecamming web segments 30. A convenient ratio of the height of the bossportion 24 to that of the aperture 26 has been found to be approximately1 to 2, although this may vary somewhat. In like fashion, the remainingboss portion is snugly confined to the aperture of an adjacent nestedblank so that axial movement of nested blanks relatively to one anotheris reduced to a minimum, enhancing the stability and integrity of thestack.

Thus, it will be seen from the foregoing detailed description that themagazine seal blanks of the present invention provide full depthaperture and boss-interlocks which affords increased area of contactbetween adjacent seal blanks for enhancing interference to separation ofa nested stack longitudinally therealong. The same structure reducesaxial endwise play to a minimum, further enhancing integrity of a stack,and also facilitating axial ly endwise separation of a blank from astack. The configuration of the interlock also facilitates the use ofmore rugged tooling relatively unaffected by reasonable wear.

As will be apparent to persons skilled in the art, various modificationsand adaptations of the structure abovedescribed will become readilyapparent without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. In an open seal blank adapted to be embraceably nested with otheroverlying and underlying seal blanks of similar configuration and havinga back plate and a pair of integral outwardly flaring side flangesprovided with locking means intermediate the ends thereof forcooperatively interlocking with corresponding locking means on bothoverlying and underlying seal blanks, the improvement wherein thelocking means includes a first locking shoulder facing generally awayfrom the back plate and a second locking shoulder spaced from said firstshoulder and facing generally toward the back plate, the lockingshoulders define opposite sides of an aperture spaced from the edges ofthe flange, said second locking shoulder being inwardly offset from theflange for cooperatively engaging the first locking shoulder of anunderlying seal blank.

2. The seal blank of claim 1 wherein the locking shoulpositioned aboutmidway along the longitudinal extent of the flange.

3. The seal blank of claim 1 wherein each flange is a substantiallyplanar member having an inwardly projecting boss carrying the secondlocking shoulder, the boss being integrally joined to the flange bycamming ramps for assisting endwise separation of the blanks.

4. The seal blank of claim 1 wherein each flange has a longitudinallyextending free edge and includes an in wardly projecting boss at saidfree edge, said boss carrying the second locking shoulder.

5. The seal blank of claim 4 wherein the shoulders are in generallyspaced parallel relationship, the second shoulder being positionedintermediate the first shoulder and the edge.

6. The seal blank of claim 4 wherein the boss is inwardly offset fromthe flange by a distance substantially equal to the thickness of theflange.

7. A stack of embraceably nested and interlocked overlying andunderlying seal blanks of similiar configuration, each blank including aback plate and a pair of integral outwardly flaring side flanges havingfree longitudinal edges and locking means spaced from the edgesintermediate the ends thereof, the locking means including a firstlocking shoulder facing generally away from the back plate and a secondlocking shoulder spaced from said first shoulder and positioned betweenthe free edge and the first shoulder, the locking shoulders on eachflange defining opposite sides of an aperture spaced from the freelongitudinal edge of the flange, said second locking shoulder beinginwardly offset from the flange for 6 cooperatively engaging the firstlocking shoulder of an underlying seal blank. References Cited 8. Thestack of seal blanks as set forth in claim 7 wherein each flange has arecessed boss between the aper- UNITED STATES PATENTS ture and the freeedge, said recessed boss being received 5 3,033,345 4 19 3 Kuster 24within the aperture of an underlying seal blank. 3,380,127 4/1968 Tetens24 23W 9. The stack of claim 8 wherein the recessed boss is integrallyjoined to the flange by camming ramps received within the underlyingaperture, said ramps facilitating the endwise separation of abuttingseal blanks without inter- 10 U S Cl X R fering with the interlocktherebetween prior to separatiom 20665 DONALD A. GRIFFIN, PrimaryExaminer

